They intended to harm you with Bitterness but GOD turned it to Sweetness

Life is in storm and you are lost somewhere in confusion being at bay from GOD. Life was so good sometimes before you were attacked with troubles if not seriously to that of Job, Joseph, Mordecai or Daniel. Lets talk about Moses who had sweetness of life unless he understood real will of GOD and took the matters in his hands ending to 40 more years of desert life as a shepherd for his father-in-law. Isn’t it so embarrassing once a powerful prince of Egypt now working as shepherd servant to his own father-in-law. You can get the picture of this experience, isn’t it? And yes by the way book of Genesis 46:34 says Egyptians hated shepherds and considered this occupation as work of menials.

Bitter cup is waiting to be emptied

Many of you don’t know but such bitter moments are important for our own personal growth. It breaks our old self creating new us with changed heart pure enough to be acknowledged by GOD. Be it Job, Joseph, Daniel, Moses, Jacob or other lives especially Jesus, went through extreme bitterness. Jesus challenged, “Can you drink from the bitter cup I will drink.” Without bitter cup drinks there is no drawing closer to GOD and we all know that very well. The test, trials, tribulations and discipline are waiting for genuine children of GOD.

Bitter water while travelling in Marah

Financial crisis, persecution, deception, set ups, conspiracy; abandonment, physical torture, diseases, lost of relatives etc are some of the bitter experiences. Naomi, a mother –in-law of Ruth said Ruth1:20, “Call me Marah because LORD almighty has made my life very bitter”Because she was afflicted with poverty and death of two sons. Israelites came across Marah filled with bitter water after three days of travel since Red Sea departure miracle. They could not drink the bitter water after tasting it.

Warning not to grumble against bitter cup and Marah water

Believers should be careful not to grumble against such bitter experiences, because GOD is not only GOD of good sweet times but also GOD of bad bitter times. Job replied to his impatient wife in Job 2:10, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from GOD and not trouble.” In Hebrew word foolishness refers to moral deficiency. Grumbling would just display our immorality.

The Marah-Bitter conditions reveal the real characters

As said earlier in case of Job and his wife, bitter conditions bring out our real self in display. These are the moments when we realized if we truly loved GOD in the past just because he was good to us to fulfill our selfish needs like Job’s wife in Job 2:9, “Are you still maintaining integrity? Curse GOD and die” Or was our love to GOD genuine to that of Job 1:22 “In all this Job did not sin by charging GOD with wrong doing.”

Can never drink the bitter waters without divine interventions

Exodus 15:23 says, “When they came to Marah, they could not drink bitter water.” Why can’t they drink bitter water? Lord says in 2 Kings 2:21, “I have healed this water. Never will it cause death or make land unproductive.”Yes people could not drink that Marah water because it had death. Nobody can bear bitter experience of life without divine intervention.

How to make bitter water drinkable?

There is a way to turn bitter death water into drinkable water. The bitter experiences are very dangerous if we don’t learn how to convert it into productive and life-giving. During testing under heat, fire and pressure things get destroyed unless it is controlled. Hence that controlling factor is faith on GOD and his WORDS. Those who believe me these signs shall follow them, “They might drink and eat poison but it will not harm them.” Mark 16:18. Moses threw the wood shown by GOD while Elisha poured salt on those bitter death waters to turn them into drinkable waters to produce life. Both wood and salt represents WORD of GOD-the Jesus Christ. Hence it’s necessary to commemorate Jesus with faith to overcome such test, trials, tribulations and discipline or else we could perish like Israelites in desert.

Jonah almost died in bitter water

Everybody know preacher Jonah who disobeyed and fell into raging bitter salty sea. Later a large fish swallowed him up. There he cried unto GOD and GOD delivered him. In the midst of bitter death experience it is always safe to cry unto GOD because only he can hear our voice. For Jonah it took three painful days and nights of continuous calling on GOD to deliver from bitter death. Jonah was practically dead inside fish but was calling from land of dead in Jonah 2:1 “In my distress I called the LORD and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help and you listened to my cry.”

Only those with bitter experience can medicate other’s bitterness

Jonah now certainly learnt why he have to obey GOD after the bitter death experience. He did not want people of Nineveh to suffer the same, so he went and preached gospel for repentance. People did repent and received life from GOD. They were destined for bitter destruction until Jonah 3:5 happened, “Ninevites believed GOD.”They were saved because of faith, prayer with repentance to GOD. Jonah warned and showed the way they could be saved from destruction through repentance and faith within last 40 ultimatum days.

Don’t worry! GOD finishes bitterness-“It is finished”

Make sure bitter cup and Marah waters are drunk completely when they are turned into drinkable and eatable. Jesus said on the cross after drinking bitter gal “It is finished,” and gave up the Spirit. Forgive those you have to forgive, love those who you have hated, make peace with them for whom you had to drink bitter cup by hanging on the wooden cross and salted by sweat under extreme scorching sun. For they don’t know what they are doing. “You intended harm but GOD intended it for good” said Joseph to his evil brothers in Genesis 50:20. Bitter experience may be to harm us but GOD can turn that for our benefit. Both evil people and devil meant those bitter water cups to harm you but GOD will turn that to your benefit. GOD will finish it for you. Don’t worry.